tasted, but being deceived and misled by the consul of the philosophers, corrupted the whole world, so to speak. For a severe famine occurred, which pestilence and deaths followed, these companions, sisters and equals in the destruction of men. And many were dying each day, so that the living were not able to carry out the dead, and in the so-called porticoes they lay uncared for and many were carried away in heaps, often with five or six dead being placed on one bier, and gloomy things flowed in from all sides and the imperial city was filled with every kind of misery. But no cessation of the daily injustices and unlawful judgments and tax collections was devised by the rulers, but, as if no foreign war or divine wrath or want and violence of life, which was wearing men down, was troubling the Romans at all, so fearlessly they committed god-hated and tyrannical acts. And every imperial plan and thought was directed toward wronging their own people and outwitting them and hunting down their livelihoods and the resources of life, so that their greed was extended even to the divine sanctuaries, and they took away their sacred treasures and furnishings. And with affairs being so administered and with things both outside and inside being thus plundered and ravaged by the ill-counsel and wickedness of the 172 rulers, the leaders in the east, Alexander Kabasilas, Straboromanos, the Synadenoi, Goudelios and the rest of the select group of senatorial rulers, now bring into effect the revolt they had long been in labor with, and coming together they proclaim the kouropalates Nikephoros Botaneiates emperor, at the beginning of the month of October of the first indiction. Which, falling upon the ears of the emperor, disturbed him not moderately; for it had been foretold by many that there would be a time when N would prevail over M. And immediately he wrote to the Turks as to his own and genuine friends, promising to give gifts, if only they would seize him and those with him and send them to him. Botaneiates was one of the well-born, tracing his lineage from Phokas, though in a complex way, but nevertheless also from the famous Flavians, who derived their lineage from the renowned and elder Rome, as the ancient tradition about him holds. On the third day of the month of October, as he was about to pitch the imperial tent, a sudden light appeared in the air around the first watches of the night as far as Chalcedon and Chrysopolis and the palace in Blachernae; which seemed to all a good omen, as if some were divinely inspired that a light-bearing lamp from Lampe had come to the palace. But as he was already setting out for Byzantium, another rebellious disaffection shook the west. For Nikephoros Bryennios the proedros, who administered the ducal authority of Dyrrachium and having been relieved of it, took for himself the name of emperor, and using the soldiers there as followers and helpers, he went out from there and hastened toward Adrianople. For his brother John, having prepared some of the western forces for the expected plot, with a great multitude of Varangians and Franks, prepared them to join his brother, 173 and with them also the katepano of the same city, who happened to be his kinsman. And before he reached Adrianople, they had already proclaimed his acclamation and accession. But the emperor was disposed rather softly toward affairs; for if it had not been for this, he would have easily defeated Bryennios, since he had a very special army, which they call the Immortals, and another not ignoble one composed of a motley crowd of men, and through all these he could easily have attacked those in Adrianople first, and then Bryennios himself. But, as has been said, by acting more carelessly he both exalted him and made him great from small and caused trouble for himself. For Nikephoros Basilakios the proedros, sent as his successor, in Thessalonica

γευσάμενος, ἀλλ' ὑπὸ τοῦ τῶν φιλοσόφων ὑπάτου ἐξαπατώμενος καὶ ἀποβουκολούμενος τὸν κόσμον ὅλον διέφθειρεν, ὡς εἰπεῖν. Γίνεται γὰρ λιμὸς ἰσχυρός, ᾧ δὴ καὶ λοιμὸς ἐπακολουθεῖ καὶ θάνατοι, τὰ σύντροφα ταῦτα καὶ πρὸς ὄλεθρον ἀνθρώπων ἀδελφὰ καὶ ὁμότιμα. Καὶ ἔθνῃσκον καθ' ἑκάστην συχνοί, ὥστε μὴ δύνασθαι τοὺς ζῶντας ἐκφέρειν τοὺς νεκρούς, κἀν τοῖς λεγομένοις ἐμβόλοις κεῖσθαι ἀτημελήτους καὶ φοράδην κομίζεσθαι πολλούς, πολλάκις ἐν μιᾷ κλίνῃ πέντε καὶ ἓξ τιθεμένων νεκρῶν, καὶ πάντοθεν ἐπιρρέειν τὰ σκυθρωπὰ καὶ πάσης ατηφείας πληροῦσθαι τὴν βασιλεύουσαν. Τῶν δὲ καθημερινῶν ἀδικημάτων καὶ τῶν παρανόμων κριμάτων καὶ εἰσπράξεων οὐδεμία τις ἀναστολὴ τοῖς κρατοῦσιν ἐπενοεῖτο, ἀλλ', ὥσπερ μηδενὸς τὸ παράπαν ἐνοχλοῦντος τοῖς Ῥωμαίοις ἀλλοφύλου πολέμου ἢ θείας ὀργῆς ἢ τοὺς ἀνθρώπους κατατρυχούσης ἐνδείας καὶ βίας βιοτικῆς , οὕτως ἀδεῶς ἔπραττον τὰ θεομισῆ καὶ τυραννικά. Καὶ πᾶν προβούλευμα βασιλικὸν καὶ ἐννόημα εἰς τὸ τοὺς οἰκείους ἀδικεῖν καὶ κατασοφίζεσθαι καὶ θηρεύειν τοὺς βίους αὐτῶν καὶ τὴν ἀφορμὴν τῆς ζωῆς κατεγίνετο, ὡς καὶ ἄχρι τῶν θείων σηκῶν ἐπεκταθῆναι τὴν πλεονεξίαν αὐτῶν καὶ τὰ ἱερὰ τούτων κειμήλια καὶ ἔπιπλα ἀφελέσθαι. Οὕτω δὲ τῶν πραγμάτων διοικουμένων καὶ οὕτω τῶν τε ἐκτὸς καὶ τῶν ἐντὸς λεηλατουμένων καὶ κεραϊζομένων δυσβουλίᾳ καὶ κακότητι τῶν 172 κρατούντων, οἱ ἐν τῇ ἀνατολῇ προέχοντες, Ἀλέξανδρός τε ὁ Καβάσιλας, ὁ Στραβορωμανός, οἱ Συναδηνοί, ὁ Γουδέλιος καὶ ἡ λοιπὴ τῶν συγκλητικῶν ἀρχόντων λογάς, ἣν ἐκ πολλοῦ ἀποστασίαν ὠδίνησαν εἰς ἔργον ἐξάγουσι νῦν καὶ τὸν κουροπαλάτην Νικηφόρον τὸν Βοτανειάτην συνελθόντες βασιλέα ἀναγορεύουσιν , Ὀκτωβρίου μηνὸς ἱσταμένου τῆς πρώτης ἐπινεμήσεως. Ὅπερ εἰς ὦτα τῷ βασιλεῖ πεσὸν οὐ μετρίως αὐτὸν διετάραξεν· ἦν γὰρ ὑπὸ πολλῶν προλεγόμενον ὡς ἔσται ποτὲ ὅτε ὑπερτερήσει τὸ Ν τοῦ Μ. Καὶ αὐτίκα τοῖς Τούρκοις ὡς οἰκείοις καὶ γνησίοις ἔγραψεν ὑπισχνούμενος καὶ δῶρα δοῦναι, εἰ μόνον συλλαβόντες αὐτόν τε καὶ τοὺς περὶ αὐτὸν πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐξαποστείλωσιν. Ἦν δὲ ὁ Βοτανειάτης τῶν εὐπατριδῶν, ἐκ τοῦ Φωκᾶ τὸ γένος πολυπλόκως μὲν ἀλλ' ὅμως κατάγων καὶ τῶν περιωνύμων Φλαβίων, οἳ τὸ γένος ἀπὸ τῆς περιδόξου καὶ πρεσβυτέρας Ῥώμης κατῆγον, καθὼς ἡ ἀνέκαθεν παράδοσις κρατεῖ περὶ αὐτοῦ. Τρίτην δὲ ἄγοντος τοῦ Ὀκτωβρίου μηνός, μέλλοντος ἤδη τὴν βασιλικὴν πήξασθαι σκηνὴν φῶς ἀθρόον περὶ τὸν ἀέρα διεφάνη περὶ πρώτας νυκτὸς φυλακὰς μέχρι Χαλκηδόνος καὶ Χρυσοπόλεως καὶ τῶν ἐν Βλαχέρναις ἀνακτόρων· ὃ καὶ οἰωνὸς ἀγαθὸς πᾶσιν ἔδοξεν, ὡς ἐπιφοιβάζειν τινὰς ἀπὸ Λάμπης λαμπτῆρα φωσφόρον ἐπιδημῆσαι τοῖς βασιλείοις. Ὡρμημένου δὲ ἤδη πρὸς τὸ Βυζάντιον ἀποστατικὴ ἑτέρα κακόνοια τὴν δύσιν περιεκλόνησε. Νικηφόρος γὰρ πρόεδρος ὁ Βρυέννιος τὴν τοῦ ∆υρραχίου δουκικὴν διέπων ἀρχὴν καὶ ταύτης παραλυθεὶς βασιλέως ἑαυτῷ περιέθηκεν ὄνομα, καὶ τοῖς ἐκεῖσε στρατιώταις ὀπαδοῖς καὶ συνεργοῖς χρησάμενος ἔξεισι μὲν ἐκεῖθεν, ἐπείγεται δὲ πρὸς Ἀδριανούπολιν. Ὁ γὰρ αὐτάδελφος αὐτοῦ Ἰωάννης τινὰς τῶν ἑσπερίωνδυνάμεων εἰς τὴν προσδοκωμένην ἐπιβουλὴν καταρτύσας, μετὰ Βαράγγων καὶ Φράγκων πλήθους πολλοῦ, τῷ ἀδελφῷ συνθέσθαι παρεσκεύασε, 173 σὺν αὐτοῖς δὲ καὶ τὸν κατεπάνω τῆς αὐτῆς πόλεως, συγγενέα τούτου τυγχάνοντα. Καὶ πρὸ τοῦ καταλαβεῖν δὲ εἰς Ἀδριανούπολιν τὴν εὐφημίαν αὐτοῦ καὶ τὴν ἀνάρρησιν προδιεγράψαντο. Ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς μαλθακώτερον πρὸς τὰ πράγματα διακείμενος ἦν· εἰ μὴ γὰρ ἦν τούτου , εὐκόλως ἂν τὸν Βρυέννιον κατηγωνίσατο, στρατόν τε ἰδιαίτατον ἔχων, οὓς ὀνομάζουσιν ἀθανάτους, καὶ ἕτερον οὐκ ἀγεννῆ ἀπὸ συγκλύδων ἀνδρῶν συγκείμενον, καὶ διὰ πάντων εὐχερῶς εἶχεν ἐπιθέσθαι τοῖς ἐν Ἀδριανουπόλει μὲν πρότερον, εἶτα δὲ καὶ τῷ Βρυεννίῳ αὐτῷ. Ἀλλ', ὡς εἴρηται, ῥαθυμότερον σχὼν ἐκεῖνόν τε ὕψωσε καὶ ἐκ μικροῦ μέγαν ἐποίησε καὶ ἑαυτῷ παρέσχε πράγματα. Καὶ Νικηφόρος γὰρ πρόεδρος ὁ Βασιλάκιος διάδοχος αὐτοῦ σταλείς, ἐν Θεσσαλονίκῃ